Labs Launch Credit Card-Sized Grading Reports

RAPAPORT... HRD Antwerp and the International Gemological Institute
(IGI) have both released credit card-sized diamond reports, aiming to make
grading more efficient for traders.

The two Antwerp-based laboratories unveiled the polished-diamond
identity cards this week, though their products are unrelated to each other.
Both organizations’ reports contain the stone and the report together in a
sealed card, making them easier to ship, store and sell.

HRD’s “ID CARD” is available for diamonds ranging from 0.08
carats to 0.298 carats, and includes grades for color, clarity, proportions and
fluorescence. In addition, the organization’s new “ID CARD PLUS,” for stones
between 0.30 carats and 0.998 carats, includes symmetry and polish — the
same criteria that appear on the organization’s regular diamond reports. The
products will be available immediately from HRD’s laboratories in Antwerp and
Istanbul, and from the Mumbai base by the end of the year.

The compact, relatively low-priced document will improve
transparency in trading of smaller diamonds, HRD’s CEO Michel Janssens told Rapaport
News this week. Some 99% of polished diamonds traded around the world weigh
less than 0.30 carats, but most of these do not carry a grading report because
the cost of getting one cuts into dealers’ profit margins, he explained.

“With this product, we aim to bring a comprehensive solution
to one of the diamond market’s main challenges: ensure confidence in
small-sized diamonds,” Janssens added.

IGI, meanwhile, has named its new product the “Diamond ID,”
which it launched in April but formally announced this week. IGI is aiming to
create a safer and more efficient way to trade stones, with a report that users
can easily ship and store or carry in a wallet. It is also cheaper than other
reports and requires minimal office work for the holder, and makes the
process of selling a diamond smoother, IGI explained.

“We created the Diamond ID report with a goal of making our
evaluations easier to use and safer to transport,” said Roland Lorie, co-CEO of
IGI. “Bringing together the report and stone in one secure place will allow
industry professionals to do their work more efficiently.”

Both the HRD and IGI reports come with a unique barcode that
links to more information about the diamond on the laboratories’ online user
platforms, such as images or confirmation of authenticity.